The New Guy
by Sleepykuro
Summary: When Naruto is kidnapped and escapes his captors, he is found on the side of the road leading to Konoha city. This is only the beginning of a larger plot that involves him, a mysterious organization called the Akatsuki, a creepy guy by the name of Orochimaru, and so many others. Will he make it out alive? Not without all of the friends that he makes on the way. Magic AU.
1. Stranger Danger

**Hello anyone that decided to click on this story! I'm actually really excited about the plot-line that has taken up residence in my head. I just started watching/reading Naurto recently (a shame, I know), but when I realized the sheer genius that was the plot-line, how could I not try and make my own spin on the characters...or at least that was what my brain was telling me.**

 **So this is a magical AU that kind of, but not really, follows some of the story line. I'm going to try my best to keep the characters in character, but some of them are just really hard to make act the way that they were created to, so please just let me know if I fail at one of them and I will try my hardest to fix my epic screw up.**

The New Guy

* * *

Chapter One: Stranger Danger

* * *

The wagon that Naruto was in teetered almost nauseatingly as it hit pothole after pothole. He kept rolling back and forth along the hard, wooden floor and with it being pitch black inside, he could barely tell up from down. He gritted his teeth as his face came into contact with the wall yet again. His eyes teared up as the stinging in his nose became more acute. Why him? All he wanted was to be home in a soft, warm bed. He had no idea where he was going, nor did he have any idea who he was with.

Maybe ten hours before, he had woken up with a throbbing head and a rolling stomach, and this had been the only thing he'd known since regaining consciousness. He had no idea how long he'd been knocked out, and he supposed that it wasn't of immediate importance. The most pressing matter was that he couldn't move anything from the neck down in that ten hours, which is why he'd been helplessly flopping around the entire time, bruising and battering his entire body.

He sighed in relief as he was able to twitch his fingers. It might not have been much, and it might not have been enough to get him out of this predicament, but it was enough to reassure him that he wasn't simply paralyzed. Then again, that also took away the possibility that it was his mother and father that were driving this confounded device to god-knows-where in order for him to get help.

 _Alright, Uzumaki!_ Naruto coached himself. _It's now or never. You can do this!_ Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated on his body, trying to imagine warmth flowing through him. He had no idea what the sensation was caused by, but it allowed him to do spectacular things that no one else that he knew was capable of doing. He felt that familiar feeling in his fingertips and at the bottom of his feet. They were still relatively numb, but he could still feel more than he had been able to all night. "Oomph!" He groaned as the wagon hit another pothole and he went airborne for a moment before crashing back against the wood yet again.

His concentration faltered momentarily as he focused on the horrible pain in his shoulder. _Damn these people,_ he snarled to himself. He groaned as he began concentrating yet again. Once that familiar warmth was back, he forced himself to start trying to move his limbs and appendages. At first, it was unsuccessful. He could still only move his fingers and toes. After a little while though, he was able to feel the muscles in his arms twitch as his forearms started raising a few millimeters from the wood.

After about an hour, he had limited mobility in his limbs. Groaning at the stiffness of his muscles, he pushed himself up to a crawling position and feebly inched his way to the back of the wagon. He pushed aside the curtain and squinted as he was assaulted by light. The sun was slowly starting to make its way over the line of trees of the forest that he was riding through. As far as he could tell, it was still very early morning, and this wagon was the only thing that was riding along the path.

He didn't know where he was headed to, and he didn't know who he was with. The only thing that he knew for sure was that he didn't want to be with these guys when they reached their destination. There was no scenario that he knew of that kidnapped victims ended up better off by allowing their kidnappers to succeed in whatever plan they cook up.

The wagon was moving at a pretty good speed, and was fairly high up in the air. With his limited mobility, he knew that jumping out would hurt…a lot, but it wasn't like he would be able to jump out while it was stopped and outmaneuver his attackers in the state that he was in. It just wasn't going to happen.

He closed his eyes and lurched himself forward, grimacing as the edge of the wagon hit his stomach as it rolled over yet another bump. He felt the wind force itself from his lungs immediately, and whatever air that hadn't removed itself from that blow left once he slammed against the compacted dirt. He rolled to a stop a few moments later and grimaced in pain. He opened his eyes and looked on lazily as the wagon kept rolling along, the drivers completely unaware of what had happened. Hopefully they wouldn't find out for some time.

He rolled on to his stomach and pushed himself on to his hands and knees. He clenched his eyes shut as he tried to draw up the strength to get to his feet, but found none. After one last attempt to push himself up farther, he felt his arms buckle under the strain and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He landed back on the dirt, and the air whooshed out of his lungs for the umpteenth time that day as he passed back out.

* * *

Iruka Umino whistled a merry tune as he walked through the busy streets on the outskirts of Konoha city. He was surrounded by many excitable children that were rushing around, looking at stalls with wide and wishful eyes. His heart went out to the poor darlings, and he wished that he had the money to buy everything that their small hearts desired. As it was, he didn't even have enough money to cover the necessities for all of them.

"Don't get too close," Iruka warned them quickly. "Inari," he scolded to the oldest boy of about ten. "You know better than that."

Said boy, lowered his head as he slowly turned away from the vender and shuffled back to Iruka with a defeated sigh. "Sorry, big brother."

Iruka patted him gently on the back. "I know that you want all of these nice things, but that just isn't in the cards right now." Inari wasn't Iruka's little brother, nor was he related to any of the children that he was with. They were all orphans of famine and war that had spread across the country a few years earlier. Iruka, an orphan himself, had taken up the responsibility of caring for them as best as he could even though he wasn't exactly the richest person in the city. There was only so much someone could do on a teacher's salary.

"What are we going to look for today?" another girl inquired. She bounded toward him with a big smile, her red hair pulled into pigtails.

"Berries," Iruka told her. "You know that the blackberries are the sweetest this time of year." The girl, Moegi practically glowed in excitement at the prospect.

"Oi, brats!" a bored voice came over the rest of the children that Iruka was herding around. Iruka looked over and saw that Shikamaru was looking at a pair of girls that were staring in awe at a jewelry stall. "Quit standing around. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can all go home." He had his hair pulled back in a ponytail and a hoop in one ear. His face was a mask of perpetual boredom that he always seemed to feel. He was a true slacker in all definitions of the word and seemed to find any activity that required effort to be a 'drag.' He was a good kid regardless and was kind enough to help Iruka out with this despite him having a family that was more than able to provide for him.

"I'm surprised that Choji isn't here," Iruka told Shikamaru as they both walked behind the rest of the children that had finally stopped staring at all of the stalls and started walking toward the forest. "I figured he'd be all over an excursion like this."

"Normally he would," Shikamaru agreed, his voice coming out as nothing more than a sigh as he put his hands behind his head and looked up at the sky, watching the clouds move at a slow pace over them. "He had to stay behind, though. It's his parents' anniversary and he's manning the bakery for them while they go out."

"I see," Iruka nodded in understanding. "That's very considerate of him."

"Meh," Shikamaru said noncommittedly. "Sounds like a total drag."

They made it past the trees as they were talking and were walking along the trail, which was surrounded by increasingly dense trees and foliage. The shade was a nice relief compared to the stifling heat that the sun created in the city. Iruka sighed in contentment as he wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked down at the children. "Okay," he said. "Split off into groups of three and start looking around for berries. Remember, don't eat any until I've had a chance to look at them, alright?"

"Yes, sensei," they all mumbled in unison. They all split off and quickly rushed off the path, looking for berry bushes.

"Shouldn't we help them?" Shikamaru questioned Iruka with a raised eyebrow.

Iruka shook his head. "No. They're all excited about this. I'm sure that they'll be happier on their own than they would be with uncool adults trying to tell them what to do."

He expected another noncommittal answer from Shikamaru, which was his forte, and was surprised when he was met with silence. He looked over at his student and saw that he was staring further along the trail.

"What is it?" Iruka questioned.

"There's something farther up on the road," Shikamaru told him. "It's too far away for me to see what it is, though." A beat of silence passed between them before Shikamaru shrugged. "I'm sure it's nothing."

Iruka frowned. "It might be nothing, but I'd rather check it out and it be nothing than risk the kids." Shikamaru sighed and took a step toward the object, but Iruka placed his hand on the teenager's chest. "You stay here. I'll go and check it out."

"I can—"

"Stay here and make sure none of the kids call out," Iruka told him firmly. "It's probably nothing, but you're still my student. As your sensei, I'll make sure that everything's okay. It's my job."

"Fine," Shikamaru sighed, rolling his eyes. "Whatever you say."

Iruka smiled at him before walking toward the lump in the road. He could faintly make out the silhouette of the object, but couldn't tell much about it other than it was too large to just be a tree root. It was probably just a dead animal, but the clenching in Iruka's gut told him otherwise. There was something too familiar about the shape of the mass. As he got closer, it dawned on him, and he started running toward it. That lump was a human.

He made it to the person in record time. It was a blond boy that was lying on his stomach with his limbs sprawled out near his body as though he had collapsed while he was on his hands and knees. He quickly rolled him over on his back and placed middle and forefinger against the side of his neck and sighed in relief as he felt a strong and steady pulse as the same time that the boy took in a deep breath and let it out.

He looked at the boy's face and deduced that he was probably sixteen, the same age as Shikamaru. He had three scars on either cheek that looked a lot like whiskers and the rest of his face was covered in small nicks and bruises as though he had been repeatedly slamming different parts of his face against a solid object. The boy's eyelids started twitching and flickered open briefly, showing bright blue irises before fluttering shut again.

"Shikamaru!" Iruka called loudly, turning around to see that his student was already walking quickly toward him.

"Who the hell is that?" Shikamaru demanded.

"Some kid," Iruka replied. "He's passed out, but doesn't seem to be in dire condition. All the same, we need to get him to some kind of healer and figure out what's happened to him."

"Lady Tsunade has the closest shop," Shikamaru told him. "I'll go and get Kiba. He lives nearby and can help me carry him there."

Iruka nodded in consent and Shikamaru turned around and rushed away. _He might not be motivated most of the time_ , Iruka mused, _but he sure does pull through when it counts._ Iruka felt a rush of pride run through him at the thought of how amazing all of his students really were. They would all grow up and become fine mages, he just knew they all would.

* * *

Sakura Haruno was a busy girl. At the age of just sixteen, she was one of two second in commands at Tsunade's healing ward and was training under the best medical professional in all of the fire country. Not many things surprised her anymore, and she was prepared for just about anything. She could deal with broken bones, deep cuts, and children that simply needed their booboos kissed. She had seen it all and was confident in her ability to handle anything.

That was before her sensei bailed on her for the morning shift, insisting that she needed to practice running the medical ward on her own so that she could handle having her own in the future. That was obviously code for _I'm going to gamble away half of your paycheck and spend the other half on sake._ If that wasn't enough to put Sakura off her game, the flow of patients that day was unreal. She had seen at least three people for heatstroke, ten for broken limbs, and there had even been a carpenter that had hammered a nail straight through the palm of his hand.

When the patients had finally trickled down from their steady stream to almost deserted, she had taken a seat on one of the beds, panting from exhaustion. She was going to need a vacation after this. _At least it's almost over,_ Sakura assured herself, looking up at the clock that was sitting on the wall, mocking her. _You only have a little over an hour left. Then Shizune comes in and you can go and pass out._

She heard the ding of the doorbell going off as hurried feet came through the door. She sighed as she pushed herself off the bed and walked out of the sickroom and into the waiting room. She tiredly assessed the situation and suddenly became more alert. Her fellow classmates, Shikamaru Nara and Kiba Inuzuka were standing in the middle of the room with a blond guy. He was passed out and had his arms thrown over both Shikamaru and Kiba's shoulders. He was a couple of inches shorter than both of the boys so his feet hung off the ground, swinging with every movement the other two made.

"What happened?" Sakura demanded as she turned around and immediately walked back into the sickroom with the two boys following her. She motioned for them to lay the stranger on the bed that she had just been sitting on a minute before.

"We don't know," Shikamaru told her. "We found him like this in the forest. He was passed out on the road toward the south."

Sakura closed her eyes and took in a deep breath through her nose as she called forth the magic in her body, concentrating the flow toward her hands. She placed her hand over his head and quickly ran it down the length of the blond's body, doing a scan. She frowned as she took a step back from him. "He has no serious physical injuries," she informed them quickly, almost talking to herself.

She tapped her finger against her chin as she thought. A lightbulb suddenly went off in her brain as she thought of something. "Ah," she said as she brought her hand back to his chest and went a little deeper inside. "Just as I thought," she murmured to herself, detecting traces of magic running through his body. Not just through the magical networks, but also in his nerves and muscles. "Paralysis spell," she mused. "He must have pushed himself to exhaustion by trying to fight against it."

"Paralysis spell," Shikamaru said in disbelief. "Why would someone cast as spell like that on him?"

Sakura shrugged. "For all we know, he could deserve it. Maybe he's a highway man or something."

"You've got a point," Shikamaru said quietly. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is turning into a total drag! I'm regretting telling Iruka-Sensei about this. I should have just kept my damn mouth shut." He looked over at Sakura with an almost pained expression on his face, as though he would have rather been anywhere else. "I wouldn't feel right just letting him be here with you alone if he's dangerous." He turned and looked at Kiba. "Go and find a Jonin. Tell them what's going on and get them to come here."

* * *

Kakashi Hatake was strolling down the streets of the markets of Konoha carelessly. He remembered Iruka mentioning something about taking the children out into the forest to let them pick berries to eat. As much as it didn't seem to be the case, Kakashi actually had a huge soft spot for children and greatly admired what Iruka was doing for the orphans in the city. He had just gotten of patrol and was heading toward the southern road to see if Iruka needed assistance with anything before he went home.

He passed a few people that stared blatantly at him and he simply smiled back, not that they could really see it too well with the cloth mask that covered the bottom half of his face. He was no longer too bothered by the stares. He always found it humorous when people realized who they were staring at and would immediately look away. He was the famous copycat mage, after all, and had mastered over a thousand spells.

He sighed in contentment. It was so nice to be feared. Of course, he couldn't stay careless for long. Something that resembled an oversized bullet slammed into his stomach and sent him toppling to the ground with the breath nearly completely knocked out of him. He felt weight on his lower half and figured that the projectile was sprawled all over him. He looked up and saw the unruly brown hair of Kiba Inuzuka. So much for being feared.

He just lowered his head back to the streets and tried his best to ignore the questioning stares that were becoming much more obvious and almost no one turned away in fear. A few heartbeats later, Kiba must have gotten over his shock, because he immediately scrambled off Kakashi and stood up, allowing Kakashi to sit up. He looked wearily up at the tanned teenager, shaking his head in exasperation as Kiba's brown eyes looked down at him uncertainly. He scratched the back of his head sheepishly and held a hand out toward Kakashi.

"Sorry, Sensei," Kiba told him as Kakashi allowed him to help him up. "Totally my fault," Kiba sighed. He lowered his eyes to the ground for a moment in obvious embarrassment before looking back up at Kakashi with a startlingly serious look in his gaze. "I'm glad that I ran into you though. We need you at Tsunade's infirmary. Some kid showed up in the middle of the forest. He's unconscious and Sakura says that it's a paralysis spell. No one knows what's going on and we thought that he could be dangerous."

Kakashi nodded as he stretched, forcing himself to forget about the tenderness in his stomach as he contemplated what Kiba said. "I'm glad that you guys were rational about this," Kakashi finally told him. "I want you to go to Iruka and tell him to get those kids away from that road until it's been checked out and tell him to go and talk to Genma about everything."

Kiba nodded and he and Kakashi rushed in opposite directions. Kakashi darted past people, not bothering to apologize as he pushed them out of the way. He didn't have time for that. There were two Genin alone with a potentially dangerous stranger. Tsunade really chose an amazing time to shirk her duties. He scowled at the thought as he pushed past the wooden door, wincing at the shrill bell that rang above his head and assaulted his eardrum. There was an unhurried patter of footsteps moments later and Shikamaru Nara came from the back and into the front room, looking as though he had no worries in the world. He supposed that was a good thing, though.

"Hello, Kakashi-sensei," Shikamaru greeted with a half wave that quickly turned into him trying his best to stifle a yawn. "I think this is the quickest I've ever seen you show up."

Kakashi frowned at the teenager. Yeah, he might have been perpetually tardy, but he figured that he would have received a warmer welcome than this. Maybe even a look of relief that the big, bad Kakashi was there to make sure that they were safe.

"I liked it better when you brats were younger," Kakashi said decidedly as he walked to Shikamaru, who turned around and led him to the back. He was hit with a scene of Sakura Haruno leaning over a bed, her pink hair falling into her face, obscuring her green eyes. She was looking at the most unassuming boy that Kakashi had ever seen.

Sakura looked up and beamed at Kakashi, much to the Jounin's pleasure. At least some of the younger generation still had an appreciation for his abilities. "Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura called, sounding so happy. He felt a bit of joy himself; it had been a while after all since he had seen the young mage. It filled him with pride to know that his former student was doing so well.

"So," Kakashi said as he walked over to the bed that housed the unconscious boy. "What do we have here?"

* * *

 **So, I hope that you liked the first chapter! I realized that I never mentioned anything about pairings, though I do hope to make this more plot-driven than just romance, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to put that out there.**

 **Naruto/Hinata**

 **Sakura/Sasuke**

 **Shikamaru/Temari**

 **Jiraiya/Tsunade**

 **Ino/Sai**

 **Kakahi/Iruka**

 **I hope that none of you are offended by any of these, but there you have it! I hope that you liked the chapter and feel free to leave behind any feedback!**


	2. Making Arrangements

**So welcome to chapter two! I won't keep you for very long. Thank you for all of those who bothered reading the last chapter and I hope that you like this one. Enjoy!**

* * *

The New Guy

* * *

Chapter Two: Making Arrangements

* * *

Naruto's consciousness came to him like a slap to the face. As soon as he became aware, he sat straight up and looked around with wide eyes, breathing frantically. Fatigue hit him a moment later and he found himself falling back on to the soft mattress with a low groan. What happened? Where was he?

Figuring that he might be able to find an answer to the second question more easily than the first, he closed his eyes harshly and opened them back up, willing his vision to focus and take in more than just hazy shapes and bright colors.

He was laying on a cot in a long room that was lined with more empty cots. The walls were wide and outlined in a wooden trim. Natural lighting came through and illuminated the space through the huge arched windows that lined the walls. It was a beautiful place, Naruto admitted to himself. Beautiful but unfamiliar. If he had to guess, he figured that he was in some sort of healing ward, but he had no idea where.

"He's awake!"

Naruto winced at the sudden loud voice. It belonged to a girl, and whoever it was sounded somewhere between excited and apprehensive. He turned toward the source of the sound and saw that it had come from a pink haired girl who looked around his age. She was standing in a doorway, staring at him with unsure, wide eyes.

A moment later, she was joined by two other people. One was a guy that was around their age with brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and brown eyes that were half lidded, as though he was bored. The other was a man in his mid-twenties. He had silver hair that stuck up at a slant. The bottom half of his face was covered by a cloth mask and there was a large scar that cut across one of his eyes. All three of them looked at Naruto and he suddenly felt like he was a circus attraction.

"Hello," he said. His voice came out gravelly, and he suddenly realized how parched he was. When no one moved to offer him water, he figured that he wasn't exactly a guest at this place. Suddenly feeling more than a little nervous, he weakly went on. "Can someone tell me why I'm here?"

"Funny," the guy with the ponytail remarked. "We were about to ask you the same thing."

Naruto blinked uncomprehendingly. He should be in his bed at his house. He'd kissed his mother goodnight and had went to lay down. "I…" he trailed off helplessly. "I don't know. Where is here?"

"Konoha," the silver-haired man informed him. "You're in the capital. We found you on the road leading toward the south of the fire country. You were passed out when a teacher came across you. We brought you here to receive medical treatment. A paralysis spell was cast on you and we want to know what happened."

Naruto blinked as the memory of pain on his face, shoulder, and stomach came back to his mind. His eyes widened and he inhaled sharply. "Taken," he said, looking at them with wide eyes. "I was knocked out and taken from my home. I woke up and was in the back of a wagon and my entire body was numb. I managed to break the spell a little and pushed myself out of the cart. I must have passed back out afterward."

"Oh goodness," the pink haired girl gasped, her green eyes looked at him sympathetically. She took a step forward, as though she was intending on coddling him when the brunette reached out and grabbed her by the upper arm.

"Don't be stupid, Sakura," he advised her. "We don't know if he's being truthful or not. We need to check his story out and make sure that it's legitimate."

Sakura's eyes hardened again as she nodded. "Right."

"What's your name?" the oldest of the trio asked. He took a step toward Naruto, his face—at least what Naruto could see of it—contorted into a puzzled frown.

"Naruto," he replied.

"You look familiar," he told Naruto. "I know that I haven't met you before, but there's something about you that I can't quite…." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter." He looked at Naruto and said, "I don't suppose you have a last name?"

"Uzumaki," Naruto said.

Naruto saw the silver haired man blink slowly as he stared intently at him. His stare was so concentrated that Naruto began to squirm fitfully. "I…is there something wrong?"

"What is it, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura demanded.

The man, Naruto was guessing it was Kakashi-Sensei, turned away from Naruto and toward the girl. "Nothing's wrong at all."

"So, Naruto Uzumaki," Kakashi-sensei said as he turned around and looked at the blond all over again. "You're a long way from home. Land of Whirlpools?"

Naruto felt his heart sink into his chest. "I never told you where I was from." He threw all caution to the wind and tossed his blanket off, getting to his feet. "You guys are kidnappers too, aren't you?" He took a step back and ended up tripping over the blanket that he'd just thrown on the floor and fell into a heap next to it. He groaned as he attempted to scramble back to his feet. His entire body was still so sore; he couldn't move at more than a pace that was just quicker than that of a seventy-year-old grandma.

"Calm down, Naruto," Kakashi said to him in a soft voice. His eyes were crinkled in a smile as he held his hands out in front of him. "Don't make us restrain you. You're going to end up hurting yourself and knocking yourself back out. Why don't you just sit back down and we can all talk about this calmly?"

"Tell me how you know where I came from," Naruto snapped at him.

"Your father was my teacher," Kakashi told him calmly. "You look just like Minato, and with the last name Uzumaki, it couldn't be a coincidence."

"My dad was _your_ teacher?" Naruto asked disbelievingly. He shook his head. His father was a pretty cool guy, but as great as he was with the people of the whirlpools, he couldn't see him as someone's sensei. "How? Are _you_ from Whirlpool too?"

"Your father was originally from Konoha," Kakashi told him. "Now sit down on the bed and relax. I'll try my best to get ahold of Minato-Sensei and we can get everything sorted out. All you have to do is relax."

Naruto looked at him with distrustful narrowed eyes for a few seconds and the masked man simply smiled back at him reassuringly. Naruto reluctantly relaxed and slowly shuffled back to the bed. "You're sure that you know my father and this isn't just some strange trick to get me to lower my guard?"

"I'm sure," Kakashi told him before he turned around and looked at Sakura and the brunette. "I think that he's safe to be around. Would you happen to have a scrying mirror laying around by any chance?"

"Ah, yes," Sakura told him. "There's one in the front room. I'll get it for you."

Kakashi looked over at the brunette. "Stay with him, Shikamaru," he told him. "You know, just in case he has some sort of panic attack or attempts to leave through one of the windows."

"Whatever," Shikamaru sighed as he walked toward where Naruto was sitting on the bed and sat on the one next to his. He looked at Naruto with the same perpetually bored expression that he'd had on his face since Naruto had woken up. The blond awkwardly got back under the blankets and laid back down.

Naruto heard a shrill _ding_ go off and a man's voice carried into the room. "Hello, Kakashi-sensei. Is the boy okay, Sakura?"

"He seems to be," Sakura replied as she and another young man walked into the room. He looked to be in his early twenties. His hair was pulled up into a ponytail and there was a scar marring the tanned complexion of his nose and cheeks. His face was smooth and kind, and Naruto felt automatically drawn toward him.

"This is Iruka-sensei, Naruto," Sakura told him. "He and Shikamaru are the two that found you out on the road."

Naruto looked between Iruka and Shikamaru with an awkward smile and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Thanks," he told them. "I appreciate you not letting me stay out there and become roadkill."

"It was nothing," Iruka said as Shikamaru merely shrugged. "How are you feeling?"

"A little sore," Naruto admitted. "Mostly I'm confused though." He looked around the infirmary again, as though answers for why he was in this situation at all would just plop down beside him. Naturally, that wasn't the case. "I…I just don't know why anyone would want to kidnap _me_ of all people."

"Kidnap?" Iruka asked sharply. His face contorted into a puzzled frown. "What happened to you?"

* * *

Kakashi walked into Tsunade's office, which was filled with more medical scrolls than he cared to count, many of which were strewn across the floor with not just a few pieces of scattered paperwork that were probably more overdue than half of his mission reports. He ignored them and settled down on one of the two chairs that were seated outside of the large desk, which was covered with even more scrolls and paper. He looked down at the small hand mirror that Sakura had given him, and tried his best to ignore the fact that it was glittery and pink.

He concentrated on the magic that was flowing through his body and willed it to travel toward his right hand, which was holding the mirror above his lap. A moment later the glass started shimmering, looking like it was filled with water instead. "Minato Uzumaki." He said to it.

A moment later, the face of a man in his late-thirties appeared on the mirror. He had blond hair that was slightly longer than Naruto's. That aside, Kakashi figured that the handsome features that the man had would be exactly what Naruto had to look forward to in the future. He saw Minato jump minutely and look at him with startled blue eyes.

"Kakashi?" Minato asked, his voice weak with disbelief. "Is that you?"

"Long time, no see, sensei," Kakashi said, his eyes crinkled close as he smiled at his former teacher.

"It has been a while," his teacher agreed. Kakashi could tell by Minato's voice that he wasn't really all that focused. There was something important on his mind and he had a feeling that he knew exactly what it was. "I really don't mean to be rude, but this really isn't the best time. Kushina is a mess right now and I need to get back to her. Our son is missing and we have no idea where he could be." He saw Minato's eyebrows pinch together and for a second he thought that the older man might actually start crying.

"That's of why I scryed you," Kakashi admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I kind of found him."

Minato blinked once. Twice. Three times. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah," Kakashi said. "He's here in Konoha."

"How the hell did my sixteen-year-old son end up in Konoha?" Minato asked him weakly. His shoulders visibly sagged in relief before they stiffened up again. "Wait. Are you sure that it's Naruto?"

"Kind of short," Kakashi began describing him. "Has spikey blond hair, blue eyes and six scars on his face that almost look like whiskers? Loud and clumsy?"

Minato sighed and a weak half-smile came to his face. "That sounds about right. You wouldn't happen to know how he got there, would you?"

"I think that you guys might need to head this way as quickly as you can," Kakashi said instead. "Something weird is going on, and I think that this conversation needs to happen in person, if only for your wife's sake."

Minato's eyebrows drew back together in a frown. "He's alright, isn't he?"

"As far as I can tell, he's fine," Kakashi told him placatingly. "I've sent out someone to get Tsunade and she's going to check him out. I'll see if I can get ahold of Jiraiya and have him take Naruto in for a couple of days. It's safe to say that Naruto didn't come out here on his own, and having Jiraiya look after him might be best."

Minato nodded. "I'll see you in two days. Sooner if I can manage it."

"Tell me when you're close, and I'll meet you at the southern gate," Kakashi agreed.

He cut the connection and got to his feet. He walked out of the office and was greeted by the sight of an irate blond. Tsunade was standing in front of him with her arms crossed over her well-endowed chest. "Hatake, what the hell were you doing in my office?"

"Talking to an old friend," Kakashi replied smoothly as he made a show of putting the mirror back on the circulation desk and walking toward the sickroom. "Your patient is waiting in here." He looked over at Tsunade. At least Kiba had gotten to her before she had started on her sake.

"Kiba said something about some kid being found unconscious on the southern road," Tsunade said as they walked inside. She looked over and saw Naruto sitting on the bed. Naruto looked up and over at Tsunade. His blue eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. Kakashi figured he knew why. Tsunade was beautiful with long blond hair, pulled back into pigtails and almost amber colored eyes. Her skin was flawless and had the look of a woman in her twenties.

Kakashi snickered at Tsunade's obviously pleased expression. "Don't be fooled, Naruto. She's using magic to look so young. She's actually fifty."

Naruto's expression shifted from enamored to horrified almost immediately as he scrambled backward, toward the headboard. He heard Sakura laugh lowly, but that tinkling noise was cut off by a glare from Tsunade.

"Are you some sort of pervert, granny?" Naruto demanded, pointing an incriminating finger at her. "Are you trying to lure poor, innocent boys to you so that you can have your wicked way with them?"

Kakashi saw a vein pop out in Tsunade's temple and had to cover his mouth with his hand to cover a louder snort. Iruka looked between Kakashi, Tsunade and Naruto nervously. "Lady Tsunade," Iruka said soothingly. "I don't think that Naruto's in his right mind. Why don't you check him out and make sure that everything's right upstairs before you kill him?"

"Hah!" Naruto said cockily, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked at Tsunade superiorly. "Yeah right," he boasted. "I'm sure that _she's_ the one that needs to be looked at! Besides, I could take that granny on with no problem!"

Kakashi couldn't see a way that this situation was going to get any better with Minato's idiot son shooting his mouth off. He scratched the back of his head, weighing the options while he watched Tsunade's eye start twitching. Her palms were beginning to glow with an eerie blue light that promised trouble if it were put to use. Finally deciding that his way was the best option, he nodded to himself and calmly walked past Tsunade and Iruka to stand next to Shikamaru, who was now standing at Naruto's side, on the opposite side of his bed as Tsunade. The young genius looked up at him questioningly, and Kakashi smiled at him before promptly summoning magic to the palm of his hand and smacking Naruto on the base of his head. The kid stiffened before slumping back on to the mattress.

"Kakashi!" Iruka's loud voice was the next thing that he heard aside from Shikamaru's low snort. "What do you think that you're doing? You can't just attack an innocent—"

"He was _saving_ him, Sensei," Shikamaru informed Iruka with a shrug.

"Thank you, Shikamaru," Kakashi told the genin with a smile. He looked over at Iruka and raised his eyebrows playfully. "At least _someone_ recognizes my thoughtful actions for what they were."

"There were other ways to resolve this," Iruka said stubbornly, crossing his arms firmly over his chest. Kakashi sighed, knowing that Iruka's soft spot for kids was going to drown out any kind of reasoning that was brought to him, though Kakashi supposed that he could live with that. Iruka wasn't stronger than him if he decided to jump at him. Naruto, on the other hand, was no match for Tsunade, who was one of the Sannin. She was quite possibly the strongest female mage in Konoha. Naruto wouldn't have stood a chance, especially talking about her age. It was a sore subject with the beauty, to say the least.

"Alright," Kakashi sighed, putting his hands behind his head as he walked back over to the doorway, where Tsunade had yet to so much as move. She was still staring at her new patient with disbelieving anger. "I have some arrangements to make for the night. I'm sure that you four can manage to figure this kid out and not kill him." He looked at Tsunade for confirmation.

"As long as he stays like this, I'll probably be able to refrain," Tsunade grumbled.

* * *

Jiraiya thought that he was going to actually achieve a nose bleed for the first time in a long time. Those curves! Those legs! Not too big and not too small! Goodness, the women here were some of the finest specimens he had ever seen for his research, and he had been to many different lands. He had no idea why he had ever left Konoha in the first place when he was looking at the beautiful brunette in front of him…well, that might have been a bit of a stretch. A wall separated her from him. He was sitting in a shady corner, out of the sight of most people while he used a transparency spell that he had perfected in his younger days to look through the wall. He knew that most people frowned upon this, but it was all in the name of research! How else was he supposed to get more material for his famous _Icha Icha_ series?

"Hehehehe," he laughed lecherously under his breath as his eyes widened. Why was she moving like that just to wash off her leg? Goodness, it was like she knew that he was watching! He quickly pulled out his pad and pen and began jotting notes, being sure to only take his eyes off his victim…ah, _research subject_ for a second at the most.

"If I didn't enjoy your novels so much, master Jiraiya," a masculine voice reached the pervert's ears, "I'd report you to the Hokage…or at least tell Tsunade so that she could reprimand you."

At the name of his old partner, Jiraiya flinched. He felt a phantom pain in his chest as the memory of being struck there hit him as though it had just happened a moment ago and not thirty years previously. He could still feel the ache of both broken arms, six broken ribs and the ruptured organs that had left him in the infirmary for quite a few days.

"You do enjoy my books, though, Kakashi," Jiraiya informed him. "Why are you interrupting my research? Do you know how long it takes for me to get all of the right details in for my books? It's so hard being a literary genius, and everyone goes around trying to stop the flow of ideas! I never thought that _you_ would be the one to betray me in such a way, Kakashi!" He looked at Kakashi with a scowl, crossing his arms over his chest as he waited for Kakashi to explain to him exactly why he was there, interrupting his peeping…er, research.

"Yeah, uh, I'm going to need you to take a small break from your research," Kakashi told him as he took a step back and leaned against the wall of the next building. His silver hair glowed dimly in the small amount of light, and the way that it was sticking up and leaning over to the side slightly, made Jiraiya feel as though he was a beacon, luring Tsunade toward him so that he would have to feel her wrath.

"Why?" Jiraiya asked, breaking his transparency spell to turn around and look at Kakashi.

"Well, you see, something interesting has happened and it might spell out more trouble than what we are seeing on the surface," Kakashi said as he gestured for Jiraiya to start walking away from the bath house. Jiraiya looked back at the wall longing for a few more seconds before he sighed and turned around, walking away from the beautiful building.

He sighed as he looked over at the younger man. Kakashi was looking at him expectantly as they both got back on to the streets, and carefully moved around rushing people. Jiraiya noticed that Kakashi was leading him toward the southern part of town, which was also the place that Tsunade had set up shop. He sighed and finally let go of the naked women back at the baths and concentrated on Kakashi. "What happened?"

"Naruto Uzumaki was found on the southern road. He was passed out thanks to a paralysis spell. He said that he woke up on the back of a wagon and pushed himself off and passed back out again. He was kidnapped and we don't have all of the details right now."

Jiraiya was silent for a few minutes. At the name, his heart squeezed in his chest. Minato had been like a son to Jiraiya, and at the mention of Minato's son, an inexplicable happiness coursed through him. Naruto was Jiraiya's godson and practically a grandson to him, even if he hadn't seen the boy since he was a newborn. After the initial happiness, anger and relief ran through him. Someone had tried to harm Naruto. Jiraiya was pleased that Naruto was alright, but at the moment, that didn't matter. Jiraiya wanted the blood of whoever did this, and he wouldn't rest until someone was held accountable.

"I'll head out tonight," Jiraiya told Kakashi. "I'll head out north and see if I—"

"No," Kakashi cut him off with a nervous smile. "You see, master Jiraiya, I've already gotten ahold of Minato and told him that you would watch over his little brat until he's gotten here."

"This is more important," Jiraiya insisted. "I need to get out there as soon as possible. It's kind of hard to dredge up clues. It's going to take me a little while. Why don't you ask Tsunade to take him in?"

"Tsunade will kill him," Kakashi said. "He has absolutely no tact and is a bit of an idiot. He's already called her granny, and I can't imagine that he's going to be more intelligent when he comes back around. I've already had to knock him out to spare him from her wrath."

Jiraiya looked at the masked man with a slacked jaw for a few moments before he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. What had Minato and Kushina been doing with this boy? Did he not know how to sense danger, or had his parents just not taught him how to speak to women? Jiraiya shook his head and cracked a small smile at the thought of Tsunade getting worked up over some kid. Naruto had to be sixteen by now. He really was getting old, wasn't he?

"Fine," Jiraiya sighed, scratching the back of his head. "I can stick around until Minato gets here. How long until he does?"

"Two days," Kakashi replied. "He said that he would be here sooner if he could manage, and that's possible with him, as you know."

Jiraiya nodded in agreement. "Okay. Let's go and see this little idiot."

* * *

 **I'm sorry if anyone thinks that this is going a bit slowly, but I want to get a good feel for the characters before any action picks up, but I promise that it is on the way. Chapter three introduces a few more characters, one is extremely lovable and the others definitely have the potential for it!  
**

 **Chapter Name: Life is Such a Drag**

 **Any comments, Faves or Follows would be much appreciated and definitely stoke my ego. Thank you for reading and I hope that you all enjoyed!**


	3. Life is Such a Drag

**I hope you enjoy the third installment!**

* * *

The New Guy

* * *

Chapter Three: Life is Such a Drag

Shikamaru groaned as he leaned against the gate of Konoha. There was a huge wall encircling the city with wrought iron gates that were opened during the day and shut at night. Passengers could still get in at the hour, but more thorough checks of their cargo were done for security reasons. He groaned as he looked up at the sky. It was in the middle of the night, and he had been one of the two unlucky bastards who pulled the short stick and had gotten stuck with patrol duty. If that didn't make his luck crummy enough, the other sap that got stuck with the job was none other than Rock Lee.

The best word to describe Lee was quirky. He was overly enthusiastic about _everything_ , just like his Sensei, Gai. Both Lee and Gai were complete lunatics that wore hideous green spandex jumpsuits and had massive caterpillars for eyebrows. Lee wasn't a bad guy, quite the opposite, actually, and would do anything to help anyone out, but being around him in the middle of the night when he would rather be sleeping was a complete drag.

"Do you want to see who can finish their rounds the fastest?" Lee asked Shikamaru excitedly. Shikamaru was silent for a moment, staring at the black bowl cut that was Lee's hair. Not a single strand of the shiny hairdo moved from its place despite the jerky movements that Lee made. "If I do not win, I will do five hundred kicks and if I cannot do five hundred kicks I will do—"

"We're supposed to be patrolling, Lee," Shikamaru cut his partner off, his voice coming out as nothing more than a sigh. Why did it have to be him out here? "We're supposed to take our time and look around, remember? Besides, you can't do exercises while we're working. It's against code. We're supposed to remain constantly vigilant." Not that Shikamaru particularly liked being vigilant, but being a stand-up mage was everything to Lee, and Shikamaru wasn't above a little manipulation to get the hyperactive boy to calm down.

"Of course," Lee said quickly. His body straightened even more than it had already, something that Shikamaru thought was impossible. His right arm came up and his thumb was held upward as he looked at Shikamaru with a wide and toothy grin. A gleam came out of nowhere and sparkled off of one of his teeth in the corner of his mouth with a _ding._ "You are a great mage! You have inspired me to take my duties as a patrol guard much more seriously. I declare you my role model, Shikamaru!"

Shikamaru sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and his forefinger. Why was he always stuck with the lunatics? "Don't say things like that, Lee. It's weird." He was silent for a moment, feeling a pang of guilt when Lee's form crumpled slightly at his exasperated words. "Besides," he said after a moment, "Gai is already your role model. You won't get a better one than that."

"Of course," Lee nodded sagely. "Thank you for reminding me, Shikamaru! I am forever in your debt."

"Sure…" he trailed off uncertainly. He had no idea if there was actually a way to reply to Lee's statement without getting the green mage all worked up again. Deciding against replying to that train of conversation at all, he tried for a new angle. "Why don't you take the first round? You look a bit restless." It was customary that each gate held two guards. Each would take turns patrolling the right side of their gate in hour intervals, using magic to check for any outsiders within a mile of their standing. Each round took about half an hour to complete, and the tasks were so tedious that most mages didn't really take it seriously. The other guard would stand at their gate so that there would always be someone there to admit any late-night travelers.

"Thank you for your consideration, Shikamaru," Lee cried, jumping up in a victory pose. "You are truly a nice guy!"

"Yeah, yeah," Shikamaru said, feeling a migraine coming on from being around someone as hyper as Lee for too long. "Go on ahead." Lee grinned at him before he turned around and bounded away, quickly vanishing from Shikamaru's sight.

Shikamaru let out yet another suffering sigh as he leaned even more heavily against the metal bars of the gate and allowed himself to slide down them until he was seated on the ground. He looked down at his wrist where a watch was sitting. He could make out the big hand sitting on the six and the little hand sitting on the two. He groaned. It was only two thirty in the morning! He still had three and a half more hours until his shift was over. He grumbled underneath his breath; this was such a damn drag!

 _Snap_. He looked around, immediately forgetting his anger at his situation. Someone was out there. He knew that it couldn't be Lee, who was probably half way to the other gate, going on about his springtime of youth. "Who's there?" Shikamaru called out. He stood up and took a step forward, away from the gates. " _Illuminate!"_ A ball of light sprang from his hand and rose until it was dancing over his head, lighting the area around him. He looked straight ahead, but saw no one on the dirt road. "Come out!"

"Ah!" a friendly voice called out somewhere to Shikamaru's right. It belonged to a guy, that much was obvious, but Shikamaru couldn't see anyone. "Sorry about that!" he called. He heard shuffling and then saw three silhouettes step from behind trees. The tallest of the outlines had been the speaker. Shikamaru couldn't tell much about him, other than he had a hood drawn over his head.

The three walked closer, and the tallest had his hands out in front of him. The other two were slouching along behind him, seemingly indifferent. "We were walking through the trees, off the road. We've had a couple of run ins with some bandits and figured that we'd be safer if we weren't in plain sight."

Shikamaru nodded. It was a smart idea, and he couldn't blame them for taking precautions. The bandits on the road could be pretty nasty. "So, this is Konoha?" the speaker said. He was close enough for Shikamaru to see that he had on a hoodie of sorts and his face was covered in a pattern of war paint that Shikamaru wasn't familiar with, which was common with foreigners.

The guy smiled at Shikamaru and stuck his hand out toward him. "Nice to meet you, friend. I'm Kankuro of the Sand." Shikamaru took his hand and shook it firmly before Kankuro turned and gestured toward the shortest of the group. "This is my younger brother, Gaara." Gaara was a pale redhead with large black rings around his green eyes and a deadened look to him that made Shikamaru uneasy. Gaara looked over at Shikamaru blankly, but otherwise didn't respond to his introduction, which was fine by Shikamaru. "You'll have to excuse him," Kankuro said, rubbing the back of his head as he smiled sheepishly at Shikamaru. "He's not very talkative and is kind of shy."

"No problem," Shikamaru said. He nodded his head toward Gaara out of politeness before he turned and looked at the third member of their party.

It was a female that was probably a couple of years older than him. She had thick blond hair that was pulled back into four ponytails at the back of her head and dark green eyes that went well with her tanned complexion. All in all, she was a very pretty girl, but the look on her face completely turned Shikamaru off. He wouldn't call it snotty, but she did look kind of bitchy. "This is my older sister, Temari." She waved at him halfheartedly, as though he wasn't worth her effort to be kind. Shikamaru nodded in her direction as well before turning to look at Kankuro.

He held back another sigh as he began the customary interrogation that every night time entry had to complete. "What brings you to our city?" he questioned as he gestured toward the small shed that sat just to the left of the gate. It housed a small table with four chairs surrounding it. The forms for entry sat on in the middle. Shikamaru sat down as did the others and he grabbed three pieces of paper and handed one to each of them.

"We fell on some hard time in Suna," Temari spoke up, looking down at her paper with a small frown. There was a glimmer of frustration in her green eyes and Shikamaru wondered if that was why she was being so cold. He shook off his curiosity, however, after a few moments of contemplation. It would be too much of a pain to find out. "We figured that Konoha might have more work and better opportunities."

Shikamaru nodded slowly in understanding. He was silent for a few moments, letting them get farther into their forms before he spoke again. "Do you have a designated place to stay tonight?"

"Yes," Kankuro replied. He smiled at Shikamaru before turning to look at Temari. "Kabuto knows that we're coming in tonight, right?"

Temari nodded slowly and Kankuro looked back at Shikamaru and said, "We're going to be going to the Yakushi residence tonight."

Shikamaru nodded in acknowledgement and watched as they all stood up and walked over to him, handing their papers over. He looked down at them, and made sure that they were all filled out before getting up. He sat them down on the table and led the siblings out of the shack and toward the gate. He pulled out his key and unlocked the padlock around it and pulled the chain off. He cracked it open just enough to admit the three inside and sighed as he walked back over to the shed, cursing as he realized that he had forgotten to check out their luggage before he had let them go. He shrugged it off. They looked young and exhausted. He doubted that they would cause any trouble. He had heard about Suna falling on hard times, and figured that their story was legitimate.

He looked down at his watched and cursed lowly. Only about fifteen minutes had passed by. This night was going to last forever.

* * *

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest. He refused to admit that he was pouting, even if that was exactly what it looked like he was doing. Why was he staying with some old guy? Jiraiya had long white hair, that was pulled back in a wild ponytail. He had war paint that streaked from either eye down the tanned cheeks of his face. He was tall and muscular, and very eccentric from what Naruto could tell. That masked guy, Kakashi, seemed to look at him like he was some sort of revered man, but Naruto couldn't see what was so great about him.

He was sitting in the kitchen of Jiraiya's large house, looking around, trying his best not to feel impressed by the grandeur of everything in the home. It was obvious that the old guy liked the finer things in life. It was pretty early by Naruto's standards, but Jiraiya had insisted on them both getting up early. Naruto watched the adult in the kitchen, fiddling with something on the stove and saw after a few moments that Jiraiya was putting on tea.

"Why'd you wanna get up so early?" Naruto mumbled as he looked at Jiraiya with bleary eyes, watching as the man walked over to the table and sat across from him.

Jiraiya looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "It's almost nine o'clock," he informed him, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's not like I woke you at the crack of dawn. Most mages at your age are up at that time, anyway, practicing for the promotional exams."

"I'm not a mage," Naruto told him. He crossed his arms over his chest, mimicking Jiraiya in a way that was so not childish. "I don't come from a magical family, so there's no reason for me to be up this early."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto for a moment before a grin spread across his face. "I had a chat with your dad last night while you were asleep."

"Yeah," Naruto said. "You know him too?"

"Of course, I do," Jiraiya said. "Your father was one of my students, after all!"

"What's up with all of these teachers?" Naruto asked abruptly, frowning at the old man. "Kakashi said that my dad was his teacher! My father isn't a teacher! He's a carpenter in whirlpool. He's helped me with my homework before, but I don't think that he teacher material!"

Jiraiya simply blinked at the kid. It was obvious that he was confused, but Naruto couldn't figure out why the stupid man was puzzled. Realization dawned on his face a few moments later, but Naruto didn't know what the epiphany was for. "When we say student and sensei, we don't mean a school type of student and teacher. I trained your father in the skills of magic and your father taught Kakashi the same things."

"But my father can't do magic," was Naruto's reply. Someone was missing something very important. It was either him or Jiraiya, and Naruto was certain that the old mas was the one missing the detail here that Naruto was continuously trying to point out. "I think that you might have the wrong guy."

"Really?" Jiraiya asked. Naruto didn't appreciate the obvious sarcasm that his voice was laced with. "Tell me then, Naruto, how many men named Minato Uzumaki have spikey blond hair that looks a lot like yours, and eyes the same shade of blue as yours?"

"I'm sure that there are plenty of—"

"Oh, I'm not done yet," Jiraiya cut him off. "But this Minato also happens to have a lovely wife named Kushina Uzumaki that has red hair, violet eyes, and an infamously short temper that has Minato cowed completely? And a son that is sixteen years old that resembles his father greatly and has some of his mother's pigheaded tendencies? Tell me, Naruto, how many families in that tiny country of Whirlpool have an exact clone of your family?"

Naruto opened his mouth and closed it yet again, knowing that Jiraiya had a point, but that didn't stop him from being delusional. "I'm pretty sure that you're just senile," Naruto informed him, crossing his arms over his chest.

He saw a vein throb from Jiraiya's temple and wondered why so many adults did that to him whenever he said something. It happened a lot in this stupid city. They were all weird.

"Kid," Jiraiya sighed after a moment. His strange bout of anger was apparently forgotten as exasperation took its place. "Your father is a mage. Your mother is a mage. You are a mage…or you could be a mage if you wanted to."

Naruto was silent, letting the old man's words sink in. He normally wasn't speechless, but the preposterousness of what the man had just told him left him unable to make a coherent sentence. He looked at Jiraiya, part of him wanting the man to go on and tell him how this would be possible and another part of him wanted him to shut up with all of the lies of a promise of a cool and exciting life.

Jiraiya continued speaking after a brief pause. He looked surprised and not just a little pleased by the fact that Naruto had been unable to retort anything. "As I was saying before. I was speaking to your father last night and we were talking about you. We both agree that the people that took you probably didn't break into your house and snatch you up by chance. They want you, and they want you specifically. You need to be able to defend yourself in case something like this happens again and no one is there to defend you."

"I can take care of myself just fine," Naruto argued cockily as he crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Jiraiya with a self-assured smirk.

"Really?" Jiraiya asked him. His tone was flat and almost bored. "Is that so?"

Naruto nodded superiorly and leaned back in his chair. He closed his eyes and smiled. He knew that the old man was impressed by his awesomeness. He was just refusing to show it. A moment later, Naruto found himself sprawled on the floor. His head cracked against the tile floor and he let out a reflexive curse as he looked up and saw Jiraiya standing over him, his palm glowing brightly.

"If I wanted to," Jiraiya told Naruto, "I could kill you right now and there's nothing that you could do about it. You're a cocky little kid, but your father and I know what's best for you. So, shut up and listen when I'm talking to you."

Naruto looked at Jiraiya with wide eyes and a slackened jaw. The older man was so large and, apparently, the same age as granny Tsunade. He had never imagined that he would be so quick that he'd gotten around the table and struck Naruto before the blond had time to register that anything had moved from the place that he had seen it before he'd shut his eyes a heartbeat before.

"That was awesome!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly. He jumped to his feet and looked at Jiraiya with wide and hopeful eyes. Maybe this old man was cooler than he had originally thought. Jiraiya's stern expression evaporated immediately as a wide smiled spread across his lips.

"Glad you think so, kid," he told him earnestly. "You father told me to train you in the basics as best as I could until he got here." He smiled almost peacefully. "I agreed and told him that I would make sure that you were ready for anything that might come after you."

"You're serious?" Naruto said, still not sure if he believed what Jiraiya was telling him.

"Very serious," Jiraiya told him. He smiled at Naruto and said, "Why don't we go ahead and get started?"

* * *

Deidara groaned as he looked into the back of the wagon. His long blond hair swished violently back and forth and he looked around the road at the forest that surrounded them. That spell that Tobi had casted on the blond runt should have lasted until well past the two days that were required to make it to their destination. "Where the hell could he be?" he demanded, turning to look at his grudging companion.

Tobi raised his hands in a clueless gesture. Deidara imagined that he had a puzzled look on his face, but there was no way to know. His face was covered by a swirling mask with only one hole in it for an eye. That, along with the large robe that was customary of their dark guild, the Akatsuki, it was impossible to know anything about him, including his build or skin tone. Honestly, the only thing that Deidara knew for certain was that the incompetent fool had an annoying voice that set his teeth on edge.

"I gave you _one job,_ Tobi!" Deidara screeched, balling his hands up into fists. "Do you understand what's going to happen to both of us now? All you had to do was knock that brat out! He has no magical training and you can tell just by looking at him that he was weak! How did you screw that up?"

"Hahaha," Tobi laughed. Deidara's eye twitched. The fool didn't sound worried in the least. It was as though he had nothing in the world to worry about, something that deeply pissed the blond off.

"You idiot!" Deidara snarled, reaching forward and grabbing him by the cloak and shaking him roughly. "Do you have any idea what pain is going to do to us when he finds out that we failed?"

"I imagine that he's going to be pretty angry," Tobi said. That reply might have sated Deidara slightly if it wasn't for the way that his voice shook, letting the blond know that the imbecile was still trying to hold by giggles. He really had no idea what was going to happen to them. To be fair, though, Deidara rarely failed any mission that he was given, and never one of this importance…Deidara had no idea what Pain was going to do to them either.

"Let's split up," Deidara snapped at Tobi. "I can't see the little brat having gotten too far. There's no way that he's been conscious for more than a little while if you casted a strong enough spell."

Tobi let out one last giggle before he jumped away from Deidara and took the left side of the road. The blond just sighed tiredly before he jumped to the right and started searching for Pain's newest target.

* * *

"I see you guys made it here last night," Temari heard a condescending voice from behind. She twitched slightly, forgetting exactly how much she hated that four-eyed freak. She turned around and saw the face of Kabuto with his round glasses and white hair pulled back behind his head. He was smiling at the three siblings that were all seated in the living area coldly.

"Shut up," Gaara said quietly. He was rubbing his temples; his eyes were closed, and his form was shaking slightly. Temari knew that the full moon was coming up soon, and her brother was always jumpy around this time. It made her nervous, and all she wanted to do was move away from him as far as she could, but knew that it was out of the question. Being obvious about how uneasy Gaara made her was like signing her own death warrant.

"Where's food?" Kankuro asked gruffly. His brown hair was mussed and his eyes were half lidded. He looked completely done with life, like usual. Neither of her brothers were morning people, though one from just waking up and the other from not sleeping at all.

"It's Sunday," Kabuto informed Kankuro, as though that was supposed to mean something. Temari and Kankuro both looked at him blankly, as Gaara abruptly stood up and left the room, apparently not in the mood for chatter. Kabuto sighed and looked at them both as he shook his head. "We need to head into the market today to shop for food. I'll take one of you with me, so that at least someone out of the three of you can learn the layout of the city. The other one can stay here and keep an eye on…" he trailed off and looked in the direction that Gaara had stalked off in, "things."

"I'll go," Temari volunteered. Kankuro silently looked up at her with worried eyes. It was obvious that he didn't want to be left on his own with a grumpy Gaara when they had just endured over a week of travel across the Country of Fire. "I have a better eye for things like this," she reasoned. It was the truth. She was the plan maker and tactician of the trio, so it made more sense for her to become more accustomed to the layout of the city so that she could formulate a plan.

"I know," Kankuro sighed, his voice pained.

"We don't know how long we have until father gives us the signal," Temari informed him. "We need to be ready to go at any time, so I need to start working out strategies as soon as I can." She looked over at Kabuto, who was standing at the edge of the living room with his arms crossed over his chest. She saw a small frown appear on his face and realized what must have just come to his mind. He was going to become her bitch when the time came for them to act.

She smiled at him sarcastically and asked, "Are you ready to go yet?"

* * *

 **And the plot starts thickening! So, we have the kidnappers appearing and the sand siblings. What could they possibly be planning with Konoha, and more specifically Naruto himself? I hope you all enjoyed the Naruto-Jiraiya banter that I put in. I feel as though their relationship in the series was one of of the most warming things that I have ever encountered...and the most hilarious.  
**

 **Feel free to favorite, follow and comment. I'd love to know what you think and if there's anything that you'd want to change/see more of!**


	4. Training Fails

**I bring you another chapter! Thank you gio08 and wolf6230 for reminding me that my scenes needed to be separated, I had totally forgot.**

* * *

The New Guy

Chapter Four: Training Fails

* * *

Hinata tapped the tips of her fingers together nervously as she and the rest of her squad walked down the streets of Konoha, toward the forest. Kurenai-Sensei was leading them to the east of the city. The forest started inside of the walls on that side so that the mages could do their training within the safety of the walls without getting in the way of civilians. She was walking between her two partners, Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame. They were total opposites, though they were some of the best friends that Hinata had ever had.

Kiba was a wild one with an almost feral expression constantly on his face. His canines were sharper than the average human; his eyes were black slits, and his brown hair was always in disarray. He was unnecessarily loud most of the time and would say things just to rile people enough to get them to attack him. The thing that she probably liked most about Kiba, however, was his sidekick, Akamaru. He was this huge white dog. Hinata had no idea what breed he was, but he was like an oversized puppy when it came to her. He always wanted to play and cuddle.

Shino was a different story. He was a very quiet boy that always wore a large shirt with a collar that came up and covered the lower portion of his face. He had sunglasses covering his eyes at all times and exuded the most calming aura that Hinata had ever felt coming from a person. Even when Shino was angry, the boy was calm. The only part of Shino that wasn't calm and collected was his hair, which stuck out in an almost afro sort of way, but she liked the way that it looked.

She guessed that she found nearly everything about the two boys to be completely endearing since they were her best friends. Despite her timid nature, no one really messed with her because of those two. They were very protective of her, and seemed to be looking out for her even when they weren't around. They were extremely kind and respectful toward her and never tried to take advantage of her kindness. The fact that they were nice to her didn't mean that they were very kind to anyone else that they came across, which was why she was surprised when Kiba started speaking about a stranger that they had found on the southern outskirts of the city.

"He was kidnapped apparently," Kiba said, finishing off his story with a small frown. "Shikamaru was telling me about it yesterday afternoon. Judging from Kakashi's and Jiraiya's reactions to the boy's appearance, something more is going on than what the adults are saying."

"I'm sure that they would tell you guys if you were meant to know," Kurenai informed Kiba as she turned around to look at the trio reproachfully. "I'm happy that you're so concerned about the wellbeing of this boy, Kiba. It makes me happy to see that you can be compassionate, but this isn't anything to get yourself involved in."

"Well now I know that something's going on," Kiba declared. "If you're telling me to stay out of it, then it's dangerous." Hinata recognized that look in Kiba's eyes. It was a look of excitement. Kiba liked danger more than just about anything else.

"Maybe I'm just saying it because judging the kid's personality as much as I can in the little bit that I've heard about him, he sounds like a person that you wouldn't get along with very well," Kurenai shot back quickly. She turned away from him and began walking more briskly toward the training grounds.

"M-may-maybe she's right Kiba," Hinata mumbled, lowering her eyes to the ground. She wasn't afraid that Kiba would be angry at her, but she didn't like going against what he said. It always made him a little sad. She could see Kiba look at her from her peripheral vision and knew that he looked puzzled.

"If you're sure, Hinata," Shino murmured, "then we'll be sure to stay out of it." He turned and looked at Kiba. "Isn't that right, Kiba?"

"Of course," Kiba said quickly. He slung his large arm around Hinata's shoulder and pulled her in for a one-sided hug while Akamaru barked excitedly from beside her. "We're a team, and if you don't want to have anything to do with it, then we just won't."

"Thank you," she said quietly. They were like the brothers that she never had. She had no idea what she would do without them.

* * *

Jiraiya looked as though he wanted to cry in pure frustration. Naruto found the expression almost fascinating. Much to Naruto's disappointment, Jiraiya settled with a loud groan instead of the waterworks that the blond really wanted to see. "Come on, kid!" Jiraiya snapped at him. "This is one of the simplest techniques! Every kid from the academy knows this before they even graduate!"

"Well, old man," Naruto snapped angrily. "I didn't go to an academy! How do you expect me to make a doppelganger when I don't know how to summon any magic?!" He balled his fists up in frustration as he glared at his new teacher.

"I've already told you what to do!" Jiraiya retorted back. "That's all I can do! You have to learn this on your own!"

"Well you suck as a teacher!" Naruto snapped. "I don't know how you taught my old man anything!"

"Minato was one of the most talented students I have ever come across," Jiraiya informed him, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's not my fault that you didn't inherit his natural talent."

"Hahaha, stop it!" a shrill voice screeched.

Jiraiya's demeanor totally changed as soon as that annoying sound hit Naruto's ears. He straightened up from his almost pouting slouch and a large smile spread across his face. There was something very wrong with that look. It was creepy and made Naruto uncomfortable. "Hee-hee," Jiraiya giggled, scaring Naruto even more.

He dashed away from Naruto and dove into the bushes on the far side of the clearing. Naruto stood frozen for a moment, unsure of what had just transpired. Shaking himself out of his shock, he dashed after his teacher. Jiraiya had dragged him all the way out here, he would be damned if he was left behind.

As soon as he was inside of the bushes, he was able to see his sensei on the other side, crouching down behind yet another set of bushes. He had his hand over his mouth as his shoulders shook. Worried, Naruto rushed over and crouched down beside him. Jiraiya was peering through the bushes and Naruto felt his heart leap up into his throat. What was going on that was so bad that Jiraiya was shaking?

Afraid to look, he just leaned over so that he was able to see some of the older man's face. His cheeks were tinged red, and Naruto couldn't figure out why. Things weren't adding up.

"Hahaha!" That shrill laugh cut through the silence again, and he heard the sound of water splashing. Despite not wanting to look and be scarred like his sensei, the curiosity was killing him and he felt as though he had no choice. He straightened up a little and peered through the bushes too.

Dread soon turned into fury. If the scene of scantily clad women splashing water over each other wasn't enough to annoy him, Jiraiya's comment of, "I didn't know you had such good taste!" sent him right over the edge!

"Are you serious!" Naruto snapped, standing up. He pointed accusingly down at the still-crouched Jiraiya. He heard the women shriek as they jumped out of the creek, snatched up their belongings and ran away. "You dragged me out here to train me. What do you think that you're doing peeping at women like some sort of pervert!"

"No, no, no!" Jiraiya cried out, sounding genuinely heartbroken as he watched them run off, disappearing from sight at an impressive speed. He turned away after a moment and looked at Naruto petulantly. "Why would you do that? You scared them off! They were perfect research subjects!"

Naruto blinked, completely confused. " _Research?_ What are you researching!"

"Women, of course!" Jiraiya snapped at him as he stood up. "How else am I going to gather enough data to write another novel?"

"You…you're an author?" Naruto asked disbelievingly.

Jiraiya looked very offended as he pulled a large orange book out of his robe, "Of course I am!" It had a picture of a girl running away from a guy. The title was _Icha Icha Paradise._

Naruto looked at that, remembered what he was researching and figured that the title plus that equaled a very adult-like novel. "You _are_ a pervert!" he exclaimed, pointing at him yet again. "I can't believe that my dad learned underneath an old perv like you!"

Jiraiya brought his hand up to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed loudly. "Let's not get back on this again. You still need more practice."

He walked back through the other set of bushes with Naruto trailing reluctantly behind him. They both stood in the middle of the clearing again and Jiraiya looked at him expectantly. Naruto sighed and focused on channeling magic through his system. He felt that strange warmth that was always flowing inside of him, and tried his best to push it away, figuring that it might be the thing that's obstructing his magical flow.

"Doppelganger!" he cried out as he clenched his eyes shut, concentrating as hard as he could. His voice echoed through the forest several times before fading out. He did it; he could feel that he had a clone! He slowly opened his eyes and saw Jiraiya looking at him with the same hopeless expression that he'd had on his face the majority of the morning. Naruto looked around, knowing, just knowing that the doppelganger had to be around there somewhere. It wasn't, though. There were no clones anywhere in sight.

"Dammit!" he cursed, throwing his hands up in the air in agitation. "That settles it!" Naruto snapped at the man. "I'm obviously not magical! You've clearly got the wrong guy."

"No, I don't," Jiraiya told him. "You've got magic in you. You're just not trying hard enough to pull it out!"

"I'm trying as hard as I can. I can only put all of my concentration into it," Naruto shot back angrily. "There's no magic there! The only thing that I feel is warmth! You're just a senile old man that probably can't remember what he had for breakfast this morning. How am I supposed to believe that you know whether I have magic or not?" He turned around and started walking in the opposite direction of the stream.

"Where do you think you're going, ungrateful brat?" Jiraiya demanded.

"To take a walk," Naruto called back. "I need a break. Just go and be a perv, or something. I'm sure that there's more girls swimming in the water."

Naruto didn't wait for Jiraiya to respond as he walked out of the clearing. Once he was far enough away, he just stopped and took in a deep breath. That was probably one of the most frustrating things that he'd ever had to do. He'd felt so stupid trying to call up some sort of power that he didn't even possess. He couldn't wait for his parents to get to Konoha. He'd finally be able to go home afterward.

* * *

Shikamaru dove into the nearest bush and clambered up the tree, breathing quickly as he tried his best to calm his heartbeat down and focus. He needed a plan, and he needed one quickly.

"Dammit," he muttered to himself. Sweat dripped down his face, a testament to the stifling heat that was starting to consume the day. It was probably around 12:00. This probably wouldn't be important to anyone else, but Shikamaru knew Choji. His teammate would be ravenous soon, and it wasn't going to be pretty. Damn Asuma for being such a good mage. Shikamaru, Ino and Choji had been training under him for years, but they were still no match for him, much to all of their chagrin.

"What's wrong, kiddos?" Asuma taunted loudly from the middle of their training ground. Shikamaru could see him spreading his arms out and turning around in a circle, so that his voice would project toward everyone equally. "Are you all getting tired already?"

 _Of course, we're getting tired, you prick!_ Shikamaru thought angrily before shaking his head. Anger wouldn't get him anywhere. He needed to have a clear head as he considered all of his options, which were extremely limited from what he could tell. He could hide in the foliage, but there was no telling whether or not he would ever have an opening to attack and snatch off one of the bells from Asuma's waist. He needed pawns and lackeys for him to work with on an opponent this difficult. That wouldn't be a problem normally, but they were all separated, and he didn't know where Choji and Ino were.

"Not on your life!" Ino's voice screeched from directly across the clearing. Shikamaru sighed in annoyance. _Sure, Ino, now I know where you are, but Asuma-Sensei does too! What do you hope to accomplish this way?_ Shikamaru already knew…absolutely nothing. Ino was a very impulsive girl and often opened her mouth to speak, or shout, without thinking about what she was doing first. It was her greatest flaw…not that he would ever tell her that. She'd pitch a fit and flip out like the world was ending if she though that her teammates viewed her as anything other than the perfect goddess that she viewed herself as. Man…women were so annoying. He could almost understand why Iruka-Sensei played for the other team.

This was such a drag!

 _Crunch!_

Shikamaru winced. Choji was somewhere to his left. Far enough away that if Asuma caught him that Shikamaru wouldn't be spotted. That was a good thing in itself, but it was still horrible, because he needed his team if they were going to win this! Why were they both idiots?

"Think, Shikamaru," he coached himself, "you're the only hope right now! You've got to think of a way out of this mess."

His mind was at a blank for the moment before something clicked in his head. He quickly scrambled up the tree that he was closest too, taking extra care not to rustle the leaves, lest he give his position away. First step: snatch his teammates up and get them out of Asuma's line of fire….

"Stupid, senile old man! Who does that geezer think he is?"

Shikamaru knew that annoying voice anywhere. He turned around and stared disbelievingly as the new guy, Naruto, walked past his tree, visibly fuming. He paused and turned and looked up, directly at Shikamaru. "Hey! What are you doing up there?"

Shikamaru froze and looked down at Naruto with wide, disbelieving eyes. There was no way that his cover had just been blown by that idiot. There was no way that just happened. No one was that stupid! It was freaking obvious that he was hiding! Shikamaru just shook his head and leapt away, praying that Asuma wouldn't be able to catch up to him in time.

"Game!"

Shikamaru blinked in disbelief as he landed on the tree next to the one that he'd hidden on a moment before. He just shook his head and sighed. It really didn't matter, he guessed. It was just a game, and he couldn't find the energy in him to care that they had just lost…again. He had no idea how many times it had been since they'd been total newbies, and he didn't really care. The entire thing was just a total drag anyway.

He heard Ino cursing in a very unladylike fashion from farther off as he climbed down the tree. He jumped down the last ten or so feet, focusing on the magic in his lower limbs, allowing himself to soften the blow. "Sorry, man," Naruto told him, grinning sheepishly as he walked over to him. He had one hand sticking into a pocket while the other rubbed the back of his head as he looked at Shikamaru with an apologetic expression. "I didn't realize that you were playing some kind of game."

Shikamaru frowned at him. "Playing a game?" he asked incredulously. He shrugged, he guessed that it could be considered a game. "We were training."

"You're a mage?" Naruto asked him in disbelief.

"Is it that hard to believe?" Shikamaru asked him. He didn't have enough energy left to be offended, but he was a little bit miffed. He might have had absolutely no drive, but he liked to think of himself as an okay mage. He did his job well enough.

"No," Naruto said quickly. "It's not that. I just haven't been around a lot of mages. I mean, we have them where I'm from, but my parents wouldn't let me have much to do with them."

Shikamaru looked at him for a moment, but didn't detect anything false about him. He just shrugged it off. People were prejudice about damn near everything. It wasn't that much of a stretch to say that there were people out there that disliked the magical community. "It's not important anyway," Shikamaru informed him. "It was only a training exercise." He crossed his arms and looked at him. "What brings you out here?"

"Good question," Asuma's deep voice reached Shikamaru's ears a moment later. He looked over, in the direction of the clearing, and saw Asuma, Ino and Choji walking toward them. "It's not safe being out here by yourself. There are mages training all over these woods and sometimes mistakes happen when they're trying to cast a spell."

"I'm not alone," Naruto said quickly. "I'm with Jiraiya, but the old man got on my nerves. I needed to take a small break, so I just walked off for a few minutes."

Asuma looked at him with narrowed eyes for a moment before he just sighed. "Whatever, kid. Just be careful about where you're walking, alright?"

"No kidding," Ino said haughtily. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she looked at Naruto with a frown. "You got in the way, and I know that you're the reason that we lost."

"Cut the guy some slack," Shikamaru advised her. He didn't know why he was defending Naruto, but he felt as though it was the right thing to do. "This is all new to him, and he doesn't know about this place." Naruto couldn't be as calm as he was on the outside. His head was probably raging with thought after thought, trying to absorb everything that he could. Shikamaru could understand not being able to think straight and just go stumbling around to clear one's head. Shikamaru guessed that he just felt for the guy. If there was one thing that he hated more than anything else, it was being uncertain of what was going on. It took too much energy to be constantly wondering what was going to happen next, and what it meant for him. Naruto had just been kidnapped, and judging from the reactions of some of Shikamaru's elders (Asuma included) it spelled out trouble for the guy. It wasn't just a coincidence.

Ino rolled her eyes at Shikamaru, but backed off. "So," Choji said. Shikamaru looked over at him for the first time and saw that he had his customary bag of chips clutched in one hand while the other was digging inside, making that annoying crackling noise before he noisily shoved a handful of the junk food in his mouth. Shikamaru sighed. That was a classic Choji. "What now?"

An awkward silence consumed the five people in the small group for a few moments before Asuma spoke up. "We'll do this one more time and then we're done for the day," Asuma said after a moment. "That should give you all an idea of what you need to work on, whether it be self-control," he pointedly looked between Ino and Choji, "or reaction time," he looked at Shikamaru. No one protested Asuma's declaration, knowing that he was right.

"Well," Naruto said, "I guess I'll be off, then before that senile pervert finds me. I'm sorry about interrupting your training, and I guess I might see you guys around before I go back home."

Naruto walked off before anyone could say anything else to him. They all just stood around in silence for a few more moments before Ino spoke up. "Do you think that it's a good idea to let him go off alone, Asuma-Sensei?"

Asuma shook his head. "No, Ino, it's not. That doesn't mean much, though. Naruto strikes me as the kind of guy that won't listen to what is said to him and instead has to experience things for himself for him to absorb any truth." He rubbed his hands together and said, "Okay, you guys. Let's get started!"

* * *

This was turning out to be an informative day as well as a strange one. Naruto had spoken to more mages in the past few hours than he had in his entire life before, and there hadn't been that many that he had interacted with. He wasn't entirely sure if he liked it or not. They were a strange group of people and Naruto didn't really know how to act around them. They all seemed to be eccentric. That wasn't to say that he was normal himself, but at the moment he felt that way compared to them at least.

He shook himself out of his contemplation as he came up to yet another clearing. He paused just outside of it and peered in. A lone girl stood in the center. She was standing in a strange and slightly hunched position with one of her arms posed in front of her and the other behind her with the palms facing upward. She had her back to him, so he had no idea what she looked like, other than that she was fairly short with beautiful, long black hair.

He fought back the urge to call out and ask what she was doing. He might not have been the most observant person that ever lived, but he wasn't an idiot. He'd already ruined a game that Shikamaru and his team were playing by asking questions. This time, he'd just stand by and see what was going on by observation.

He peered inside and was so stunned that he could barely process what was going on as he saw something that resembled a tornado shoot toward the girl. Not even pausing to think about what he was doing, a familiar warmth already spread to his legs and he sprung forward, darting into the clearing. The girl inhaled sharply as she pivoted on her foot to dodge the tornado that was coming for her. It wasn't enough, though. He could see that it was about to hit her in the side, and there was no way that she was going to get out of it unscathed with how fast it was going.

Naruto dove at her, tackling her around the waist and they both fell to the ground, rolling a few times. They came to a stop with the girl laying on his chest and his arms still caged around her to lessen the impact of the fall. _She's really pretty,_ Naruto thought stupidly as he stared up at her for a moment. The girl looked down at him with wide, damn near white eyes. Naruto would have thought that she was blind if she wasn't looking straight at his face and something about her expression let him know that she was seeing him very clearly. Her mouth was opened in surprise and her entire face turned a bright red. Her breathing came out uneven, and Naruto couldn't figure out why she seemed to be about to have a panic attack.

He gently rolled her over and released her only to grab her by her upper arms and shake her gently. "Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" Her eyes widened, something that Naruto wasn't sure was possible, and her breathing got a bit faster.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" a familiar voice hit Naruto's ears.

He turned around and saw that the wild-looking guy with the red war paint on his face was standing next to a huge, white dog on the other side of the clearing with his arms crossed over his chest. He was glaring at Naruto and the dog was making a low rumbling noise in his throat.

"I think I should be asking you that question!" Naruto snapped back at him. "Why would you do that to her? You get your kicks on picking on defenseless girls, or something? You could have hurt her!"

"You're the one that tackled her to the ground, dumbass!" Wild dude, Naruto thought his name was Kiba, snapped. "That could have hurt her really bad too! You trying to break her arms or something?"

"I'm not the one that was using some sort of magic to turn myself into a human tornado and trying to slam me and my dog into someone!"

"It's called Fang-Over-Fang!" Kiba snapped at him. He uncrossed his arms from his chest and clenched his hands into fists at his side as he shouted indignantly at Naruto. "Get it right if you're going to talk about someone's moves!"

"I don't care about your stupid moves!" Naruto shot back. "I'm more concerned with her!" he gestured blindly behind him, in the general direction that the girl had gone.

"Hinata is fine!" Kiba informed him exasperatedly. "We were training!"

"What kind of training makes you almost kill someone?" Naruto demanded disbelievingly.

He felt something tug on his jacket and spun around. It was the girl, Hinata. Her face was still bright red and her eyes were lowered to the ground. "U-uh…w…w-we were t-t-training," she told Naruto quietly. "I…I'm s-s-so s-sorry th-that you th-thought that—"

"You don't need to apologize to anyone!" Kiba called over to her. "He's the one that interrupted us."

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked her. He looked over at Kiba, already forgetting his anger. "Does she seem well to you? I don't know if she should be training right now anyway." He brought his hand up to her forehead and sat the back of it gently against her skin to check the temperature.

A small squeak came out of her mouth as she jumped back and tripped over her feet. She landed on the ground in a small heap. "Hinata?" Kiba called out curiously. He heard footsteps behind him and Kiba walked past him to kneel next to her. He shook her, but there was no response at all. He quickly pressed his fingers against the side of her neck and checked for breathing. "Pulse is fine, maybe just a little fast, and her breathing is a little sporadic. She seems to be okay, though." He looked up at Naruto uneasily. "Maybe you were right…I didn't know that she was sick, or I wouldn't have done that."

"Do you have a sensei?" Naruto asked him curiously. "They might need to know about this."

"Yeah," Kiba agreed. "She's off somewhere, though, training our third member."

"Then what should we do?" Naruto asked, looking down at the unconscious Hinata.

Kiba shrugged. "I guess we just wait here until Lady Kurenai gets here or Hinata wakes up."

* * *

 **I hope that you liked it. More characters have shown up, which is always fun! I wanted Hinata's first meeting with Naruto to be special (read: funny). I love her and feel so bad for her with his obliviousness,but it still makes me giggle. Please give me a big head by favoriting, following and reviewing if you feel that it is deserved!  
**

 **Next Chapter: The Akatsuki**


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